McConnell says IRS scandal proves ongoing 'culture of intimidation' in Obama Administration and effort to 'make it harder for citizens to organize and exercise freedom of speech'

Senator Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Sunday that the IRS scandal reveals a 'culture of intimidation' in the Obama administration that is bent on making it more difficult for 'citizens to organize and express themselves.'

In an interview on NBC's 'Meet the Press' McConnell, however, backed away from claims by fellow Kentucky Senator Rand Paul that IRS officials has circulated a memo directing tax collectors to give tougher scrutiny to any groups that were critical of the president.

'The investigation has just begun so I'm not going to speculate on what they may find, but what we do know is that they were targeting Tea Party groups,' the Kentucky Republican said.

Criticism: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said the IRS scandal was indicative of a bigger problem with the Obama Administration targeting critics

The revelation that the IRS gave extra audit scrutiny to conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status is just one of three controversies that have plagued the White House for the last week.

It was also revealed that the Justice Department spied on Associated Press journalists, possibly listening in on their phone calls, without their knowledge.

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Republicans have also unleashed criticism of the administration's handling of the September 11, 2012 attacks on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans.

The IRS scandal is part of a broader problem in the Obama administration, McConnell said.

'There is a culture of intimidation through this administration, the IRS is just them most recent example,' he said.

Know-nothing? Barack Obama's allies said the president had no idea the IRS was going after conservative groups who applied for tax-exempt status

He listed issues with the Department of Health and Human Services, the Federal Communication Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission attempting to crack down on 'expression' - mostly by companies.

'What we're talking about here is an attitude that the government knows best. The nanny state is here to tell us all what to do. And if you start criticizing, you get targeted,' McConnell said.

He later added: 'What's we've seen here is an effort on the part of the government to make it difficult for citizens to get organized and express themselves.'

Meanwhile, Sen Paul, also a Kentucky Republican, suggested there was a written policy to target conservative groups opposing the president, but when pressed could not provide details.

'I haven't seen a policy statement, but I think we need to see that,' Paul told CNN. 'And when that comes forward, we need to know who wrote the policy and who approved the policy.'

A top White House adviser insisted Sunday that President Barack Obama learned the Internal Revenue Service had targeted tea party groups only 'when it came out in the news' while Republicans continued to press the administration for more answers.